is there anybody out there ?

just nod if you can hear me (p.floyd)............remember the NSA ? remember the Patriot Act ? remember the outrage over our government listening in on phone calls as collecting data ? remember the hailing of whistleblowers like Snowden as the heroes of the left for exposing such atrocities ? remember the DEMAND to reign in the govt spying agencies because they were trampling our freedoms ??.......................well apparently Claire Mcaskell doesn't . Yesterday when the head of the NSA ( Adm Rogers) was testifying on Capitol hill he claimed he doesn't have the wide ranging powers he needs to stop the Big Bad Russians from meddling in our elections....to which Ms Mcaskell responded "Why the Hell not"?......hmmm.....well that didn't take long.....she didn't even wait to catch her breath before jumping off the NSA is bad band wagon and leaping onto the GIVE the NSA all the power they need ......frightening how opportunistic or just plain stupid our politicians are.....lets give the NSA all the powers in the world to go after bad Russians from spreading fake stories on social media...BUT don't you dare use those same powers to spy on our citizens.......hint, the Russians will be wearing Red Carnations, the good guys will NOT.........to be clear, we are talking about concerns of fake stories planted by Russian spies on the internet influencing our voters in elections......because we have created a generation of morons that can't decipher if a story on facebook claiming that Bernie Sanders is a Demonic Robot that needs to eat human flesh to survive and was built on Mars is a true story or fake news......that story btw was planted by the DNC not the Olympic Athletes of Russia....(total side note, I am delighted that when the filthy commies finally won Gold that they weren't able to hear their anthem or raise their flag at the gold medal ceremony....and that OVECHKIN was not a part of the victory).....but sadly as a nation we continue to become nothing more than 30 second sound bites on the evening news.....the shameless exploitation of the Florida High School shooting by Demi Lovato and all these phonies is frightening...and honestly I am starting to think that Marjorie Stoneman must be a school for the arts....I have never seen so many overly dramatic, theatrical assholes in my life.....from the principal offering hugs to everyone VIA TWITTER.....to the Teachers Posting a Group Shot on Social Media, to the students themselves giving interviews to anyone and anything that had a microphone.....its been two weeks and you are not dead, get the fuck over it.......in 2001 I drank beer in seabright on September 12th....took a few deep breaths, thought about the prior 24 hours and went the fuck back to work on September 13th....no balloons, TV cameras or invitations to the Tonight show were offered to me....we are becoming a nation of pussies......as for gun control ? I have been clear on my position for years....ill never own one, but as long as the government can not be trusted ..and it NEVER CAN....we NEED an armed citizenry to keep despots in line......that being said.....raising the age to 21 seems reasonable......but since cars, and trucks are the weapons of terrorists these days...lets raise the driving age and voting age to 21 to........"is there anybody home" ?

No one told you when to run

You missed the starting gun.(D. Gilmour)......... everyone is up in arms over school shootings....all the teachers unions are also furious about the President's suggestion to arm teachers.( Nobody wants to see a 70 year old Mrs Witherow packing a Glock as our security detail) , but I have a suggestion......PHYS ED.....the jackalope gym teacher....every school has one...why ? Eliminate gym..... give the kids back gym time and allow them to use that period how they see fit ... unsupervised.....shoot hoops, take a walk, take a nap, whatever........and the gym teachers ? Offer them firearm training and reclassify them as onsite security....they maintain their teacher benefits, they can teach health classes or supervise study hall, but they carry weapons and engage shooters..... only shooters....they don't become cops and glorified security guards breaking up cafeteria fights.....if they don't want to do it, then they have to transition back to the classroom and become qualified to teach another subject..... nobody is forced to become the secret security....but I tend to think a lot of young, healthy gym teachers will accept their new role.....if not, we have lots of returning military already trained to handle weapons that would love the benefits, pensions and summer vacations that comes with being a teacher.....and seriously, should we really being paying someone to teach teenagers how to play dodge ball ?

See here how everything, lead up to this day

And it's just like any other day that's ever been "...in the afterglow that was sweater Nite 20, that's kinda how it felt...an incredible turnout once again....a whirlwind and dizzying 8 hours for me, got check-off everything on my to-do list.... lunch with Dano on Friday and the first ever pregame skate in the Bean Post..... maybe getting a 3 or 4 hour head start wasn't the best idea in terms of longevity, but I wouldn't change a thing...a heartfelt thanks to everyone who took time out of their 3 day weekend and traveled both near and far....." Sun coming up and then, the sun going down....shine through my window and my friends they come around".

BENEFIT INFO

So as we know, sweater nite 20 is sharing the venue and actively participating in a Benefit for Momo Nolan....Das Rolls sister...as she batlles through her cancer treatments......we will be passing an envelope in the afternoon for anyone that wishes to donate.....checks can be made out to Maureen Nolan.....

There's mosquitoes on the river

Fish are rising up like birds......well it took 20 years , but it looks like we will finally have an appearance/debut of the New Sweater Nite ramblers at the Gala....after heated negotiations with Kim Jong Un and his surprisingly Hot lil sister....the world renowned North Korean Beatles MORANBONG have decided to play at the Olympics instead of sweater Nite.....and so for the price of an Elegantes pie, we have Mac-Charlie Marine-JC playing a three hour set of Acapella instrumentals....sb rivetting......... incidentally....a small grass roots movement is growing...a few skaters are debating a Friday afternoon pre skate in THE RIDGE.....the Dog & the Kettle are early leaders to play host.....stay tuned for more.....and Happy FAT Tuesday !........."knowones noticed, but the bands all packed and gone...were they ever here at all?"

The most wonderful time of the year

And all I wanna do is drink Beer, Beer, Beeeeeers..............so just now my phone rings whilst I was trying to snooze on the 5:33 , and who is it ??? Why it's the Host of Sweater Nite 20 himself and he wants to know if we want keilbasa and pierogies as part of the Saturday Buffet..... I shot him down....guys like Steve Mac ( aka Richie Havens) would be insulted if we watered down the drink fest with food....as Roy D says....." Eating is Cheating".....it must be sweater week, I can just feel it in the air.

"the Black throated wind

Keep on pouring in, with words of a life where nothing is new "........those are the words of John Perry Barlow and his eminence... Mister Bob Weir. ..sad John passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday at the age of 70....he was an interesting chap....he has an autobiography coming out this June.. I'm anxious to read it.... He met Bob in high school and they remained friends for life, he was credited with introducing the Dead to Timothy Leary... although Jerry and the Boys were clearly from the Ken Kesey school of hallucinogenics....he ran a cattle ranch in Wyoming, was a pioneer of the internet, he attended Harvard University and was A Fellow there, he had a cat named BUCK that he swore was a bodhisatva ...and became an internet celebrity....he co-wrote some of the Deads greatest songs, including The Music Never stopped, Cassidy, Estimated Prophet, and I need a Miracle........and although I never met him , I feel as though I did......in the early 90's Donnie Hoff installed a shit load of phone lines for Mr Barlow's office in the Village for his internet endeavors and chatted him up about some photos in the office of Weir, Garcia and Company.... Barlow was so appreciative of the work Donn did that he gave him tickets to see the Dead at MSG and put our names on the Backstage B list for that show and each spring at the Garden until Jerry passed.....we had seats at center ice, 2 rows off the floor and access to a private lounge under the arena..... pretty cool.....I sure hope he is resting in peace......Ah, Mother American Night, here comes the light...... I'm turning around, that's what I'm gonna do........ Goin back home that's what I'm gonna do. ( Weir/Barlow)

Sailors fighting in the dance hallj

Oh man , look at those cavemen go "......so private companies are now shooting rockets into outer space, this can't end well....Elon Musk is flying one of his Tesla automobiles to Mars..... not sure how that benefits mankind.....or as that Canadian pussy prime Minister would call it....peoplekind.....not even a real word douche....but seriously what limits sb placed on space travel..... I'm all for less government intrusion into our private lives, and I believe everyone sb free to do whatever it is they want.( Even if they choose to do nothing) so long as their choice doesn't infringe on the next person.... hence the need for laws... some asshole billionaires flying rockets into outer space and dumping adverstisements on planets could infringe on the survival of future generations......hell if you want to go to outer space, just drop a tab of acid and listen to Dark Side of the Moon.......on a different note, our stable genius wants to have a military parade down Pennsylvania Ave..... I think that's borderline silly....so I propose having a real National Parade in Washington every November to acknowledge VETERANS day..... showcase your Tanks and machinery in that parade if you must.....have Stages with the top Bands on the mall to attract crowds, borrow a few sheckles from the social security piggy bank and subsidize the world's largest BEEEEEER tent and make it an annual event honoring all who have served....turn it into a Mardi Gras styled event...... show these poor bastards that are getting maimed overseas that a significant portion of this nation appreciates their sacrifice........ lastly...a livery cab driver parked his car outside the gates of city hall on Monday morning, took out a shotgun and blew his brains out, he left a note stating that he was trying to draw attention to the hardship those in his industry are suffering at the hands of the Bloomberg and Deblasio administration's and UBER.... I numb to the news these days, but this poor bastard struck a nerve....I said a prayer for him, that's an amazing degree of commitment to an issue.... very sad......makes we wish the scumbags in the NFL and black olives matter would follow suit...you first Oliver Vernon, instead of sitting on your fat ass during the anthem, you should blow your brains out spoony.....,....................... " It's the freakiest show, Take a look at the lawman Beating up the wrong guy.. Oh man, wonder if he'll ever know.. He's in the best selling show..... Is there life on MARS" ( D. Bowie)